Dubai court awards life term to eight accused

The Dubai Criminal Court sentenced eight accused in three separate cases to life in jail after finding them guilty of human trafficking, rape, and possessing drugs for trade purposes.

In the first case, six Asians were awarded life in jail and two others involved in the same case to 15 years in jail on charges of human trafficking, kidnapping and raping.

According to the Prosecution sheet, seven of the eight accused entered a house shared by a driver and the girl on false pretenses. They claimed to be CID staff. They pushed the driver onto the floor and and took the girl with them against her will. The driver was able to take down the car's number and informed the police.

The accused told the girl she is under arrest. They gagged her and took her to a flat where one of the accused raped her.

“I worked as a housemaid… I absconded from my employer's house and shared a house with the driver at Al Quoz area. On the same night, the accused came and told me they are CID staff and asked me to leave with them. They took me to a flat where a man told me that he had bought me for Dh10,000 to work for him as a prostitute. When I refused to do their bidding, one of the accused slashed me with a belt and another raped me,” she testified.

Police could reach whereabouts the girl and her kidnappers from the car’s number plate. They raided the flat and released the girl and some other girls who were in the same flat and worked as prostitutes.

The eight accused will be deported after completing their sentences.

In the second case, an Asian painter MSA was awarded life in jail for possessing drugs for trade purposes.

According to the accusation sheet, the man possessed 72.15gs of marijuana and was arrested while selling the drug to a police informer.

Another accused was awarded four years in jail for taking hashish. All three will be deported after serving their jail terms.

In a third case, SAH, a jobless, a Gulf national was awarded life in jail for possessing 33g of hashish for trade purpose. The court ordered his deportation after finishing his sentence.

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